Board merger will bring 'disruption … anxiety'

P.E.I.'s Western School Board has come out strongly against the province's plan to merge the English school boards.

Board chair Gary Doucette said it is disappointing government is ignoring one of the most pivotal recommendations of the education governance commission: to retain the two boards. The commission found merging the boards would not save money, and Doucette agreed.

"We have been down this road before," he said.

"The 1994 school board amalgamations resulted in major disruptions, no significant cost savings were achieved, and the overall quality of public education in the affected communities did not improve."

He warned that disruption will be repeated.

Doucette said there was no discussion with the government in advance of the announcement.

The province should be focusing on providing the resources to help students learn, he said, and "forget about tinkering with governance issues that will have no positive effect on student achievement."